
Tipping wheelbarrow
Children at Ravenscliffe School love gardening but some can contribute little or nothing to the activity. A wheelbarrow that can be attached to a wheelchair would be a useful enabling facility, especially if the child could make it tip. Severely handicapped children can be motivated by participating in the activity rather than merely watching.
The wheel had to swivel and the handles needed to be attached by universal pivots to allow for vertical flexing. The various switching functions provided enable the children to progress through stages:
1. A single tap on a large pad toggles the mechanism up or down.
2. Dual pads are provided to require a selection to be made, up or down.
3. A pad or joystick has to be held on, rather than tapped momentarily, in order to make the barrow tip.
Severely disabled children can now participate in gardening activities. It also assists staff in ‘drawing out’ children who believe themselves to be utterly incapable, giving them the possibility and desire to achieve a new experience for themselves.
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